


Did you know Edvard Munch gave up on mathematics to become a painter?

by Lia404



Series: Fun Facts from the Collective Unconscious [1]
Category: Persona 5
Genre: Futaba is a gremlin, Gen, Goro Day, Mementos (Persona 5), Screaming, Team Bonding, hints at pre-relationship shuake, if you squint hard enough - Freeform, lots of screaming, potential fix-it, use of the f-word
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-06
Updated: 2020-05-06
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:40:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,718
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24038263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lia404/pseuds/Lia404
Summary: In Mementos no one can hear you scream(aka that time when Crow allowed himself to let it all out in the depths of the collective unconscious).
Relationships: Akechi Goro & Amamiya Ren, Akechi Goro & Kurusu Akira, Akechi Goro & Persona 5 Protagonist
Series: Fun Facts from the Collective Unconscious [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1734037
Comments: 10
Kudos: 83





	Did you know Edvard Munch gave up on mathematics to become a painter?

**Author's Note:**

> Happy 5/6 everyone, it's Goro day!
> 
> To celebrate, let's go visit Mementos with the two wild cards. I feel like Goro needs to unwind a bit, and so does Joker.  
> Who knows? Maybe it'll lead to unexpected developments...
> 
> This work is part of a series of Things That Happened In Mementos, but it won't have chapters. Other stories will be posted, with equally silly titles, because I love my fun facts. Hopefully you'll understand why I chose this title by the end of the story.
> 
> Huge thanks to [Curos](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dcuros) and [Eyrist](https://archiveofourown.org/users/eyrist) who helped beta this story!

The missions had been frustrating as hell—gruesome work that had them all exhausted, and they were happy to finally leave Mementos.   
Joker was so tense it was getting hard to hide. His brain was still running from the rush of battle.   
As they were standing at the entrance of Mementos, about to get back to the real world, he stopped dead in his tracks. After a very brief moment of hesitation, he caught Crow’s sleeve so that he’d stay along.

Crow yelped, jumped and shook him off promptly. It was still enough of an unexpected outburst to alert the rest of the group who turned to look back at them.

“Joker?”

_ Breathe,  _ Joker thought.  _ You need it. _   
He confidently nodded.

“Go ahead. We’ll get out later. I still have an errand to run. Crow can help.”

Queen threw him a dubious look.

“ _ Crow _ can?”

“Yes. He’s the best suited for the situation. Don’t worry and go ahead.”

Joker’s voice bore no uncertainty. The group still hesitantly lingered at the entrance.

“You sure you won’t need a nav at least?”

“We’re not going beyond this level. I know it like the back of my hand.”

He did, too. More than they knew of it: he’d been in Mementos quite a few times by himself, ditching Morgana with lame excuses.  
He just needed the time.

In the end, the others reluctantly agreed to go, leaving him alone with a slightly disgruntled Crow.

“An... errand, is it?”

Joker mindlessly hummed. 

“Yeah. Sometimes, I need to fight specific Shadows so I can try and get items or Persona that we’ll need to go through a Palace.”  
“Why not with the rest of the group? They can help. Backup is good, isn’t it? I thought you were a team.”

Through his mask, Crow’s eyes looked pleasant, as if not realizing the irony of what he’d just said.   
Joker scoffed and averted his gaze.

“Yeah, we're a team, but… Look, it's easier if I show you. Just follow me. You’ll get it.”

At least he was sure that Crow would—he was not so sure about the others. Maybe Fox would, too, but he was almost certain the artist would focus more on art than on what he was here for.   
The rest of the team would probably deem it crazy.  
Or maybe not, but he had a status of leader to maintain, and  _ this _ would ruin it…

Crow's voice broke his train of thoughts as he walked mindlessly back through the depths of Mementos.

“These levels sure get creepier as we go down…”

Joker nodded—there was no need denying it. Mementos was getting darker and darker, with blotches of colours here and there that made the weird, organic walls look like they were straight out of one of Yusuke's paintings for which he would have found inspiration from one of his most deranged dreams.

Thankfully, Crow and Joker were skilled enough that the Shadows tended more to avoid them than to rush and attack them. Their steps echoed along the darkened corridors. 

"You walk with a purpose. It's not mindless roaming trying to find a Shadow. You really know where you're going."

That was not a question. Crow was merely observing.

"I am."

Crow nodded and kept up with his walking pace, although his face betrayed his desire to push for more information.

Joker knew exactly the place he was aiming to find. It was just after a safe room, a dead end the whole group had overlooked when they'd been there all together, but it had haunted him enough that he'd come back by himself.

He had known the others wouldn't understand his fascination with the place, so he'd scouted the level by himself, no partner, no nav, just walking aimlessly, destroying Shadows on the way, until he’d found it again.  
By the time he'd located it, he'd constructed a map of the level in his own mind.

Finding it back had pulled something from deep within himself, like uncovering a well of frustration and repressed emotions.  
It had made him face his everyday powerlessness, as if he were a silent protagonist in his own story with no reins over it.  
At that very moment, he had been alone—he had managed to get control back, his friends were away. He'd been facing the chaos of the human mind by himself, trembling with anxiety, apprehension, and a lot of other, way uglier, feelings.

That place had intrigued him the first time he'd seen it. It had appealed to him. That was all.  
But the moment he had finally found it  _ alone _ , it had opened something within him, something he hadn't even realised he kept inside.

And he felt like Crow, as insufferable as he could be when they were all together, would be able to feel the power of this place too. Somehow.

Joker was rarely a bad judge of character or situation. With the frustration and anger created by the requests they'd had to deal with today, it was the best moment to show Crow.

They passed the safe room. Joker sometimes glanced at Crow, levelling his reactions. The other boy merely walked and gazed around, not impressed by the Shadows. He had a small frown and a curious pout, as if he were trying to crack a case open, but he didn't say a thing.  
Until Joker turned left and the corridor they walked in became larger.

Their steps seemed to be louder.

All the Shadows had flown.

They had reached the dead-end.

It led to a round, massive room. Joker walked in the middle, each step echoing louder and louder. Crow reluctantly followed, his eyes wide at the scenery.   
Entering this room was like entering the painting of a sunset, a very dark one, except the usually red-tinted clouds were the walls surrounding them.  
The atmosphere it carried was blood-like in colour, tongues of fire-red grew over the walls all around the room, and ended on a blue-black ceiling that reminded a distorted city.

“Joker?”

Crow's voice was muted, as if he didn’t dare speak too loud in the room, but it was already loud enough to make Joker frown.

“Hush.”

Crow shuffled.

“Shall I… draw my weapon? Is that something…"  
“I said shut up, Crow.”

The sudden rash answer of his leader effectively shut the other boy up.  
Joker sheathed his weapons, then stood with feet aligned with his shoulders, spread his arms a little and took a deep breath, taking in the whole room.

“Now, can you hear it?”

Crow turned to cast him a very dubious glance. He looked about to ask something that could have been "are you crazy", but Joker didn't give him the chance.

"Don't make me regret bringing you here, Crow. Do stop analyzing and just feel.  _ Listen _ ."

They stayed in silence.  
Crow looked about to break it to ask another question, when his eyes widened.  
Joker smirked.

"So you can hear it too."

Sure enough, echoing from all around the room, a slow, pained wail rose. There was agony, there was fear, there was anger.  
It was like the faraway rumble of the sea, coming and crashing like waves of repressed feelings on the walls, and Joker just bathed in them, as if it were his rightful place.

Soon enough, Crow moved from behind him to stay at his side, adopting the same position as the one Joker was standing in.

"What is… what is this place? What is this sound?"

Crow's voice was a mere whisper, his voice filled with awe, reverence and...anxiety?

Joker's smirk widened, his eyes wild and free beneath his mask.

“We're still inside the collective unconsciousness, and this… I think this is the infinite scream passing through nature. The repressed scream inside of all beings. We’re just one voice among others here. There's no law, no justice, no one to judge. Just feelings, bare for our ears."

Crow nodded. Joker felt like he could see the lump in his throat. His smirk became a full-fledged toothy smile.

"The first time I came here, it almost drove me mad. Then it freed me. Hearing this scream… it was like awakening again, except the voice wasn't in my head this time. It was outside. It was  _ finally _ outside."

Joker took a deep breath, balled his fists, and...

“AAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!"

...let it all out.

Crow jumped beside him.  
Joker snickered.

"Come on, Crow. You know how sometimes you feel like howling, you have to yell in a pillow to muffle the frustration ?"

Crow nodded, reluctance easy to read on his baffled face.  
Joker spread his right arm in a wide motion, as if to show the splendor of the room.

"In Mementos, no one can hear you scream. Listen... My voice has joined the flow. It's almost already gone. No Shadow ever comes here."  
"You…"

Joker didn't let him finish his sentence as he let out another powerful yell that bounced on the walls before merging with the infinite scream.

Crow jumped again, then balled his fist, and took a deep breath in turn.

"AAAAAAAH!!!!!"

It was still a bit strangled, but not bad for a first time. Joker observed his teammate and smiled, a real smile with no teeth this time—almost fond.

"That's it. That's why I come here. Some days there's so much bullshit going on, so many things you have no control over… you just have to shout it out. Now, do you get it ?"

Crow's eyes pierced through him in an intense look, as if trying to read his mind, but he held onto his smile. The red-masked boy nodded sharply and turned back to the wall.

His next scream wasn't one so much as it was a shriek. A long, piercing song of restrained frustration, anger, reaching a high pitch Joker wouldn't have expected of him.

Then he stopped and listened to the echo bouncing on the walls, until the remnants of his howl merged again with the rest of the screaming.

Joker was about to ask how he felt when Crow suddenly started to laugh, a beautiful, wild, borderline-manic laugh that shook him. Before Joker could say anything the other boy was already taking another deep, deep breath.

"FUUUUUUCK!"

This time, Joker was the one who jumped in surprise, although he had a hard time repressing the appreciative shiver that coursed through him.  
He knew Crow needed it, he'd felt it, but he hadn't expected seeing their Perfectly Proper Team Member loosen up and curse so openly.

Joker nodded and joined him.  
Soon enough, they became both parts of an unexpected, very unsocially admittable, incredibly freeing duet.

"FUCK!"  
"FUCK!"  
"FUCK PROBATION!"  
"FUCK EXPECTATIONS!"  
"FUCK LOUSY TEACHERS!"  
"FUCK LOUSY CASES!"  
"FUCK PHANSITE REQUESTS!"  
"FUCK SHIDO'S REQUESTS!"  
"FUCK ROTTEN ADULTS!"  
"FUCK GREED-BLINDED POLITICIANS!"  
"FUCK THE COPS!"  
"FUCK TV REPRESENTATIVES!"  
"FUCK HAVING TO KEEP MY HEAD LOW!"  
"FUCK PULLING THE TRIGGER!"  
"FUCK THE SHUTDOWNS!"  
"FUCK THE BREAKDOWNS!"  
"FUCK PEOPLE'S OPINION"  
"FUCK THE MEDIA'S REACTION!"  
"FUCK PHANBOYS!"  
"FUCK FANGIRLS!"  
"FUCK BEING A SO-CALLED CRIMINAL!"  
"FUCK BEING A SO-CALLED PERFECT BOY!"

They went on and on, screaming themselves hoarse, always digging further into their deepest frustrations, getting it out until the neverending scream within the room swallowed their voices and they were left, panting, exalted, slightly snickering and swaying on their feet.

The scream became a rumble again, the waves moving away from the shore that were the walls.

Joker took a minute to recover, bent with his hands on his knees, then gathered himself and straightened up.

"I think we're done here."

Crow threw him an inquisitive look.

"So that was the errand you had to run? No new persona, no rare item?"  
"Sorry, greedy boy, no loot for you. My errand was only to let out all that damn frustration."

Crow didn't even look insulted—he merely chuckled.  
The sound was somewhat soothing after all the hurling of bad words at terrifying walls.  
It felt like a balm on his own tired feelings—Joker didn't suppress his own smile.

“Do you often do this?”, Crow enquired.  
“Every time I need to cool down.”  
“Why did you take me with you this time?”  
“Because you clearly needed it. Now… you know the place. Make good use of it."

Crow averted his eyes, clearly touched, and simply nodded.

"Shall we go now?"  
"I think it'd be for the best. It must have gotten late."

They both walked back to the entrance in silence, Shadows still running away as soon as their steps echoed on the railway.

As the Metanav pulled them from Mementos and back to the real world, Akechi's voice rose again, but this time small, a bit hoarse, almost shy.

"Thank you, leader."

Akira answered with a warm smile.

"Anytime."

Akechi nodded, then waved and went his way through the metro.  
Akira's heart felt light and warm. Somehow, he felt like he'd gotten more than what he was expecting from allowing Akechi to finally let go.

It was only once he reached Leblanc that  _ it _ struck him like a truck and he pulled out his phone.

Joker: Oracle?  
Oracle: oooo, is our mighty Joker done flirting w/ lameass Crow now?  
Joker: give me a break  
Oracle: nothing left to give that u didnt already take by urself bro  
Joker: it was needed  
Joker: trust me  
Oracle: who wud i be not to trust our fearless leader  
Oracle: the very fearless leader looking up “how to be charismatic” on Boogle in the middle of the night when his cat is asleep  
Joker: I don’t know how you know and I don’t want to know  
Joker: but I do need your help to know something else. Now.  
Oracle: oooo demanding are we?  
Joker: Oracle this is serious  
Joker: I need you to find someone called Shido who may be requesting things from Akechi in some way  
Joker: depending on what you find we may have a new request in Mementos  
Oracle: uh  
Oracle: ok  
Oracle: u know id never say no to diggin stuff on our team’s very birdy brain  
Oracle: esp if it might be spicy  
Oracle: on it now

Akira put his phone away and promptly collapsed from the usual exhaustion that was linked with any trip to the Metaverse.

The next day, he was just home from school when his phone pinged.

Oracle: Joker  
Oracle: get ur ass here rite now  
Joker: what’s happening?  
Oracle: ur request

Akira frowned and tried to gather his thoughts, scrolling up through the history of his messages to try and figure out what Futaba was talking about—ah.  
Right.  
He'd already forgotten his request, too focused on the memory of Akechi, his manic smile, his voice hoarse from screaming and the satisfied look on his face.  
The memory of the sound of Akechi finally loosening up, his light chuckle and his almost shy "thank you".  
He shook himself and got back to his messages.

Joker: did you get anything?  
Oracle: yes  
Oracle: i thought it might b spicy  
Oracle: but spicy doesnt even cover it  
Oracle: even ur damn curry is mild compared to this  
Oracle: srsly cmere youll never believe me else  
Joker: omw

He quickly changed clothes, wondering what had made Futaba so eager. She was easily excitable, but when bad metaphors came up, serious things were to be expected.  
When he picked up his bag, it was unsettlingly light. Morgana was nowhere to be seen. He tried to look for the not-a-cat, to no avail. Maybe he’d gone to the Sakura’s while Akira was changing, since he’d read the messages above his shoulder?  
His phone pinged again.

Oracle: oi  
Oracle: wats taking u so long  
Joker: uh, getting ready?   
Joker: looking for Morgana  
Oracle: Monas already here   
Oracle: n dont bother n e way youll never be ready for this   
Joker: this better be good  
Joker: and you of all people should know I’m always ready  
Oracle: srsly ur not now MOVE

He went down the stairs and closed the cafe’s door behind him casually, his steps lighter than usual without Morgana’s weight on his shoulder. 

He then proceeded to cross the street, blissfully unaware that there had been, indeed,  _ absolutely no way _ he would be ready for the revelation to come.

Well.  
At least now they knew what they were up against.

**Author's Note:**

>  _"I was walking along a path with two friends – the sun was setting – suddenly the sky turned blood red – I paused, feeling exhausted, and leaned on the fence – there was blood and tongues of fire above the blue-black fjord and the city – my friends walked on, and I stood there trembling with anxiety – and I sensed an infinite scream passing through nature."_  
>  \-- [Edvard Munch](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Scream)


End file.
